Launching of Operation Rakshak II in Punjab, spurts bloodflow

State repeats what happened in Terai.

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VIJAY KRANTI

December 31, 1991

ISSUE DATE: December 31, 1991

UPDATED: September 4, 2013 22:02 IST

Tohana hospital ward: Open fury

As in the Terai region, so in Haryana, since the launching of Operation Rakshak II in Punjab, there has been a spurt in the bloodflow. And last fortnight, it threatened to sweep over the town of Tohana, bordering Punjab.

Renting a Maruti car from a local transporter, four Sikh militants drove into Mehru market on the outskirts of Tohana, killing 26 people. What added salt to the people's wounds was the 'blatant inaction' of the police.

As over a dozen residents said, the police were put on alert within five minutes of the first shot. But no help showed up for over 20 minutes. When Chief Minister Bhajan Lal visited the area next morning, he had to face the accumulated wrath of the locals.

An angry Bhajan Lal rapped senior administration and police officials, while transferring the local DSP and SHO and suspending an ASI. Then, three days after the massacre, the police killed five 'terrorists' said to be responsible for it.

With the Punjab border just a couple of kilometres away, Tohana was an obvious target. As Harish Kumar, Hissar SP, says: "Stringent army action in Punjab has put Sikh terrorists under heavy pressure. This, in turn, has put the pressure on us."

According to him, the state police have decided to seal all entrances to Haryana along the Bhakra canal and arm all posts with light machine guns. But it will need more than that to silence the militants' gunfire and restore the faith of Tohana residents.

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